diff --git a/src/IRadio.h b/src/IRadio.h
index acb9818f..9f8de0bf 100644
--- a/src/IRadio.h
+++ b/src/IRadio.h
@@ -90,7 +90,10 @@ class IRadio {
   virtual void StartRxLoop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) = 0;
 
   /* Ask a running StartRxLoop to exit (sets a flag; the caller then joins
-   * whatever thread runs StartRxLoop). Default no-op. */
+   * whatever thread runs StartRxLoop). Default no-op.
+   * Note: Covers the Init + StartRxLoop race window; the InitWrite +
+   * StartRxLoop-on-a-thread shape (DEVOURER_TX_WITH_RX=thread) operates outside
+   * this window and is out of scope. */
   virtual void StopRxLoop() {}
   virtual void SetMonitorChannel(SelectedChannel channel) = 0;
 
diff --git a/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.cpp b/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.cpp
index 51c0c4dd..f31107db 100644
--- a/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.cpp
+++ b/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.cpp
@@ -1667,6 +1667,8 @@ size_t RtlJaguarDevice::build_tx_block(const uint8_t *packet, size_t length,
 
 void RtlJaguarDevice::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
                           SelectedChannel channel) {
+  should_stop = false;
+
   /* A window armed before a (re-)bring-up describes a chip state that no
    * longer exists; leaving it armed would make the next unrelated
    * GetChannelBusy() take the armed branch and report a stale period. */
@@ -1798,14 +1800,26 @@ void RtlJaguarDevice::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
     std::lock_guard<std::recursive_mutex> lock(_port0_mu);
     _station_ready = true; /* every port-0 write of this bring-up is done */
   }
-  StartRxLoop(std::move(packetProcessor));
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), false);
   rollback.release();
 }
 
 void RtlJaguarDevice::StartRxLoop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) {
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), true);
+}
+
+void RtlJaguarDevice::start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale) {
+  if (g_devourer_should_stop)
+    return;
+
   _packetProcessor = std::move(packetProcessor);
-  /* Restartable: clear any stop request left by a prior StopRxLoop(). */
-  should_stop = false;
+
+  if (clear_stale) {
+    should_stop = false;
+  } else if (should_stop) {
+    /* Stop requested during Init must prevent its receive loop from starting */
+    return;
+  }
 
   /* DEVOURER_RX_PATHS=0xNN restricts which RX chains the chip enables/combines,
    * by masking the RX-path-enable register (0x808 byte 0: bits 0/4 = path A
diff --git a/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.h b/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.h
index d650346b..3ea05613 100644
--- a/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.h
+++ b/src/jaguar1/RtlJaguarDevice.h
@@ -477,6 +477,8 @@ class RtlJaguarDevice : public IRtlRadio {
     return true;
   }
 
+  void start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale);
+
   /* Programs 0x520[14]/[15] and, for the EDCCA gate only, the BB thresholds
    * at 0x8a4. SetCcaMode is apply_cca(d, d) and writes exactly what it
    * wrote before the split existed. */
diff --git a/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.cpp b/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.cpp
index 1cb08fd4..99222cf7 100644
--- a/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.cpp
+++ b/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.cpp
@@ -510,6 +510,8 @@ void RtlJaguar2Device::ClearAmpduMode() { SetAmpduMode(devourer::AmpduMode{}); }
 
 void RtlJaguar2Device::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
                             SelectedChannel channel) {
+  _rx_stop = false;
+
   /* A window armed before a (re-)bring-up describes a chip state that no
    * longer exists; leaving it armed would make the next unrelated
    * GetChannelBusy() take the armed branch and report a stale period. */
@@ -590,13 +592,26 @@ void RtlJaguar2Device::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
     std::lock_guard<std::mutex> lk(_reg_mu);
     _station_ready = true; /* every port-0 write of this bring-up is done */
   }
-  StartRxLoop(std::move(packetProcessor));
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), false);
 }
 
 void RtlJaguar2Device::StartRxLoop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) {
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), true);
+}
+
+void RtlJaguar2Device::start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale) {
+  if (g_devourer_should_stop)
+    return;
+
   _packetProcessor = std::move(packetProcessor);
-  /* Restartable: clear any stop request left by a prior StopRxLoop(). */
-  _rx_stop = false;
+
+  if (clear_stale) {
+    _rx_stop = false;
+  } else if (_rx_stop) {
+    /* Stop requested during Init must prevent its receive loop from starting */
+    return;
+  }
+
   /* Start the DIG thread: track IGI to the false-alarm rate so weak signals are
    * caught without an FA storm (a fixed IGI can't span the range). */
   _dig_stop = false;
diff --git a/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.h b/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.h
index c61273d2..358d3a00 100644
--- a/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.h
+++ b/src/jaguar2/RtlJaguar2Device.h
@@ -418,6 +418,8 @@ class RtlJaguar2Device : public IRtlRadio {
    * signal-flag pattern used across the library (g_devourer_should_stop). */
   volatile bool _rx_stop = false;
 
+  void start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale);
+
   /* Shared cold bring-up (power-on -> DLFW -> MAC/BB/RF -> channel -> LCK ->
    * IQK -> coex -> enable RX/TX engine). Used by both Init (RX) and InitWrite
    * (TX). Leaves the chip fully calibrated on `channel`. */
diff --git a/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.cpp b/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.cpp
index 6fdef9ee..56995c86 100644
--- a/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.cpp
+++ b/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.cpp
@@ -83,6 +83,8 @@ struct WriteBatchScope {
 
 void RtlJaguar3Device::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
                             SelectedChannel channel) {
+  _rx_stop = false;
+
   /* A new session has sent no wide frame: a re-bring-up must not inherit the
    * previous session's wide-TX IGI floor (_wide_tx_seen). */
   _wide_tx_seen.store(false, std::memory_order_relaxed);
@@ -205,13 +207,26 @@ void RtlJaguar3Device::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
     std::lock_guard<std::mutex> lk(_reg_mu);
     _station_ready = true; /* every port-0 write of this bring-up is done */
   }
-  StartRxLoop(std::move(packetProcessor));
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), false);
 }
 
 void RtlJaguar3Device::StartRxLoop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) {
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), true);
+}
+
+void RtlJaguar3Device::start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale) {
+  if (g_devourer_should_stop)
+    return;
+
   _packetProcessor = std::move(packetProcessor);
-  /* Restartable: clear any stop request left by a prior StopRxLoop(). */
-  _rx_stop = false;
+
+  if (clear_stale) {
+    _rx_stop = false;
+  } else if (_rx_stop) {
+    /* Stop requested during Init must prevent its receive loop from starting */
+    return;
+  }
+
   /* Take over bulk-IN from the coex thread's C2H drain up front — also during
    * the register restore below, so its 200 ms bulk reads don't interleave with
    * the RX-path enable sequence. */
diff --git a/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.h b/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.h
index 5d77c6a5..ed5f1560 100644
--- a/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.h
+++ b/src/jaguar3/RtlJaguar3Device.h
@@ -533,6 +533,9 @@ class RtlJaguar3Device : public IRtlRadio {
   int64_t _tbtt_off_us = 0;
   /* StartRxLoop stop request (StopRxLoop). */
   volatile bool _rx_stop = false;
+
+  void start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale);
+
   /* True while StartRxLoop owns bulk-IN (gates the coex thread's drain). */
   std::atomic<bool> _rx_loop_active{false};
   /* Set when InitWrite zeroes the RX filters (0x6A0-0x6A4) for TX-only
diff --git a/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.cpp b/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.cpp
index 02365437..226a75dd 100644
--- a/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.cpp
+++ b/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.cpp
@@ -295,6 +295,7 @@ void RtlKestrelDevice::EnableTxScheduler() {
 
 void RtlKestrelDevice::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
                             SelectedChannel channel) {
+  _rx_stop = false;
   if (!BringUpMonitor(channel)) {
     _logger->error("Kestrel: monitor bring-up failed");
     return;
@@ -318,7 +319,7 @@ void RtlKestrelDevice::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
       ClearAckResponder();
     });
   }
-  StartRxLoop(std::move(packetProcessor));
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), false);
 }
 
 void RtlKestrelDevice::InitWrite(SelectedChannel channel) {
@@ -437,10 +438,24 @@ void RtlKestrelDevice::InitWriteTail(SelectedChannel channel) {
 }
 
 void RtlKestrelDevice::StartRxLoop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) {
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), true);
+}
+
+void RtlKestrelDevice::start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale) {
+  if (g_devourer_should_stop)
+    return;
+
+  if (clear_stale) {
+    _rx_stop = false;
+  } else if (_rx_stop) {
+    /* Stop requested during Init must prevent its receive loop from starting */
+    return;
+  }
+
   /* Take the bulk-IN over from the TX WP-release drain (this loop also consumes
    * rpkt_type=7 releases) so the two never read the endpoint concurrently. */
   stop_wp_drain();
-  _rx_stop = false;
+
   _logger->info("Kestrel: starting RX loop on ch{}", _channel.Channel);
   /* Async bulk-IN ring; walk each aggregate with the 11ax rxd parser. The
    * buffer must hold a full RXAGG aggregate (the 8852C LEN_TH is ~20 KB), or
diff --git a/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.h b/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.h
index 5db790b7..26c5200a 100644
--- a/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.h
+++ b/src/kestrel/RtlKestrelDevice.h
@@ -301,6 +301,9 @@ class RtlKestrelDevice : public IRtlRadio {
   SelectedChannel _channel{};
   kestrel::EfuseInfo _efuse{};
   volatile bool _rx_stop = false;
+
+  void start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale);
+
   /* WP-release drain (Kestrel STF USB): the fw returns each transmitted frame's
    * WD/PLE pages as an RX packet (rpkt_type=7, TX_PD_RELEASE_HOST) on the bulk-
    * IN. A TX-only path must still drain the bulk-IN or the pages never recycle
diff --git a/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.cpp b/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.cpp
index 1067f5b8..59597ea4 100644
--- a/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.cpp
+++ b/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.cpp
@@ -324,6 +324,7 @@ void Mt7612uRadio::tick_loop() {
 
 void Mt7612uRadio::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
                         SelectedChannel channel) {
+  _rx_stop = false;
   /* Stop() on the way out, as the sibling backends do: a throw from the channel
    * set or the config would otherwise leave the device open and the tick thread
    * running until the destructor happens to run, and a caller that catches and
@@ -351,7 +352,7 @@ void Mt7612uRadio::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
    * failed to start" left the device open and the tick running, which is the
    * half-open object this whole guard exists to prevent. */
   try {
-    StartRxLoop(std::move(packetProcessor));
+    start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), false);
   } catch (...) {
     Stop();
     throw;
@@ -392,6 +393,13 @@ void Mt7612uRadio::InitWrite(SelectedChannel channel) {
 }
 
 void Mt7612uRadio::StartRxLoop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) {
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), true);
+}
+
+void Mt7612uRadio::start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale) {
+  if (g_devourer_should_stop)
+    return;
+
   struct mt7612u_dev *mac_failed = nullptr;
   /* An armed station keeps its managed filter: the monitor request below is
    * recorded, not installed (mt7612u_set_monitor_rx). The log says which
@@ -416,7 +424,12 @@ void Mt7612uRadio::StartRxLoop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) {
     if (_rx_active.load())
       throw std::runtime_error("MT7612U RX loop is already active");
     _rx_processor = std::move(packetProcessor);
-    _rx_stop = false;
+    if (clear_stale) {
+      _rx_stop = false;
+    } else if (_rx_stop.load()) {
+      /* Stop requested during Init must prevent its receive loop from starting */
+      return;
+    }
     /* 64 slots is about 45 ms of headroom at the measured 1400 fps - enough to
      * ride out a slow processor without letting the producer block. The ring
      * itself is allocated here; each slot's payload buffer then grows to the
diff --git a/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.h b/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.h
index d47aa851..35b40291 100644
--- a/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.h
+++ b/src/mt7612u/Mt7612uRadio.h
@@ -127,6 +127,7 @@ class Mt7612uRadio : public IRadio {
   void bring_up(SelectedChannel channel);           /* _mu held */
   void apply_config();                              /* _mu held */
   int  txpower_target_dbm() const;                  /* _mu held */
+  void start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale);
   void start_tick();                                /* _mu held */
   void stop_tick();                                 /* _mu NOT held */
   void tick_loop();
diff --git a/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.cpp b/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.cpp
index fec024c4..44ea3110 100644
--- a/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.cpp
+++ b/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.cpp
@@ -171,6 +171,7 @@ void Rtl8733bDevice::bring_up_to_phy() {
 
 void Rtl8733bDevice::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
                           SelectedChannel channel) {
+  _rx_stop = false;
   try {
     {
       std::lock_guard<std::recursive_mutex> lock(_reg_mu);
@@ -225,7 +226,7 @@ void Rtl8733bDevice::Init(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor,
             ClearAckResponder();
           });
     }
-    StartRxLoop(std::move(packetProcessor));
+    start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), false);
   } catch (...) {
     Stop();
     throw;
@@ -355,6 +356,14 @@ bool Rtl8733bDevice::configure_tx_power(SelectedChannel channel) {
 
 void Rtl8733bDevice::StartRxLoop(
     Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor) {
+  start_rx_loop(std::move(packetProcessor), true);
+}
+
+void Rtl8733bDevice::start_rx_loop(
+    Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale) {
+  if (g_devourer_should_stop)
+    return;
+
   Action_ParsedRadioPacket rx_packet_processor = std::move(packetProcessor);
   uint8_t rx_channel = 0;
   {
@@ -363,7 +372,12 @@ void Rtl8733bDevice::StartRxLoop(
       throw std::runtime_error("RTL8733B RX loop requires initialized hardware");
     if (_rx_active)
       throw std::runtime_error("RTL8733B RX loop is already active");
-    _rx_stop = false;
+    if (clear_stale) {
+      _rx_stop = false;
+    } else if (_rx_stop) {
+      /* Stop requested during Init must prevent its receive loop from starting */
+      return;
+    }
     _rx_active = true;
     rx_channel = _channel.Channel;
   }
diff --git a/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.h b/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.h
index 84a3d8a5..456a26b8 100644
--- a/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.h
+++ b/src/rtl8733b/Rtl8733bDevice.h
@@ -146,6 +146,7 @@ class Rtl8733bDevice : public IRtlRadio {
     return true;
   }
 
+  void start_rx_loop(Action_ParsedRadioPacket packetProcessor, bool clear_stale);
   void bring_up_to_phy();
   bool configure_tx_power(SelectedChannel channel);
   /* Fill one [txdesc][frame] block at `out`. `agg_num` is the USB TX